2028 MLB Season Preview

BAL- The Orioles are, once again, putting out a very good squad, but rotation concerns make me believe that a postseason appearance is not in the cards this season (and yes, I know exactly how many games they won last year, shut up).
BOS- The Red Sox were a terrible exit for Jose Berrios’ career (and another loss) away from sweeping the Blue Jays on their way to a postseason appearance. They made one GIGANTIC move in free agency: signing William Jones away from their biggest rivals. It will be a big season for the Red Sox as they inch closer to retaking the division.
NYY- I’ll give them credit: they got a good short-term replacement at first in Dominic Smith, and Jadyn Fielder looks ready for primetime. But a refusal to improve a dismal pitching staff will end up costing them again as 2025 continues to float far away...
TB- Yes, this team is still rebuilding. Yes, they have tried to get every big free agent over the last 5 years and have been outbid every time. Eventually, this team will make noise...
TOR- Soooo remember when I said that the Blue Jays lineup was lethal last year, yeah, that didn’t happen...that said, I still believe that they’ll bounce back and win the division this season.

CWS- They’re not going to compete, even with Triston McKenzie coming aboard, let’s just be real. But maybe he and Josh Abernathy (pending a resurgent season) could bring back some big time picks that they would have anyway if they didn’t traded that away for NAZZIR NOEL!
DET- The Tigers have DROPPED, going down to 70-92 and not making any significant moves. But hey, their future closer is going to be making $30 million at one point!
KC- Remember when the Royals had a division winning team in 2024? Pepperidge Farm still remembers.
MIN- New ownership, same expectations. Htennis left behind an amazing core, so I’d be shocked if that all goes to waste because of ownership changing.
SA- I wanted to give a complement to this team, but they also let Aaron Bradshaw go without a fight so...congratulations to the Twins for winning the AL Central for the next 178 years.

(Seriously, this division consists of four mismanaged teams and the Twins, SOMEONE SOS!)

ANA- BK did something completely out of pocket and blasted damn near the entire roster into outer space...and the team STILL nearly made the postseason. With the Angels caught in the crossfire between the Volcanoes and A’s, it seems like the Angels have clocked out before giving their current squad a chance.
SEA- Today in what the hell are the Mariners doing, we have seen the Mariners break out with an 82-80 season, only to trade their best pitcher (maybe one of the best in the league at the moment), then trade their top prospect to...that prospect’s brother...then (reportedly) ask for him back. No matter what happens this season, players in the organization are caught doing the Mr. Krabs, making sure they aren’t suddenly sent elsewhere for...whatever reason.
SJ- The A’s are likely going to the postseason no matter what, but their division hopes hang on a repeat season from pleasant surprise Cedric Bishop and hopeful breakout seasons from Hank Oliver and Kurtis Freeman. They went 2-17 (!!!) against the Volcanoes last year, so winning half of the games this year (7-8 game increase) could put them in a good position.
VAN- “The Volcanoes are a skeptical team” is what we said last year, and they won the World Series. We’re not afraid to say it again though. The pitching staff as a whole, despite losing Kasey Flowers, is excellent, potentially the best in baseball, but the offense banks on repeat performances from Victor Carter, Cole Shaffer, and newcomer Abe Owens.

ATL- The good news? The Braves were a better team than the Phillies last year, only finishing behind the Phillies in the final standings because of a slow start. The bad news? The Phillies are going all out to finally win a ring. The Braves made sneaky moves, but it might not be enough to get them over the hump.
NYM- You know, the Mets put out a great team on paper (look at what that rotation could possibly do!!!). The problem is their Wilpon-style of conserving money is starting to come back to bite them in the arse.
PHI- The Phillies competition has gotten better, but their moves over the offseason will keep them uptop the division, and hopefully make them World Series champions.
PIT- The Pirates might have finally run out of gas. Numerous players have left for free agency because the Pirates simply cannot pay them (looks at Abercrombie contract), and because the Pirates have done nothing but win, their farm system looks...dead. I still believe there’s a slight chance they’ll compete, but the first sign of trouble should spell a rebuild for the Pirates...once they find a taker for Abercrombie’s contract.
WAS- With a team built from scratch, the Nationals are looking to make the postseason for the first time since 2016. Gerald Huber, Alex Reyes, and Joshua look to be gigantic additions alongside dominant closer Seth Smart and (FINALLY THIS MAN BROKE OUT) team captian Ian Cretella. It’s probably a bit too soon for them to enter the bloodbath that is the Braves and Phillies at the top of the division.

CHC- After finishing 42-120, the worst season in MLB history since a Yitz Friedman-led Detroit Tigers went 42-120 (not the company you want to be in), the Cubs changed their approach to building a contact based team. But they’re still nothing special, as improvements to the pitching staff were not made. Yet, they won’t finish at the bottom of the division because...
CIN- I’m probably being nice with a fourth-place finish prediction, because besides the fact that Don Walton, Jorge Mateo and Shelton Ladd continue to do their thing, THE ROSTER IS CURRENTLY FULL OF GUYS THAT ARE SUPPOSED TO BE IN JAPAN AND MOST CERTAINLY NOT ON A MLB ROSTER!
HOU- The Astros went through the entire season convinced that they were going to make zero noise in their shoo-in postseason appearance before finding themselves in the World Series. They made moves to bloster their roster even though everyone and the Aliens on Pluto know that the Astros are winning the division...again.
MIL- *knocks on door to make sure someone is actually managing this team*
STL- Really not sure how to rate this team. They went 82-80, which is a huge plus from their 10th overall pick a year ago. This team is still very young, so I wouldn’t be rushing for a postseason appearance.

ARI- Well, time to witness another...wait, they actually MADE MOVES?! The D-Backs new ownership finally put their money into good use, signing the Japanese Barry Bonds, along with other gigantic moves. We’re skeptical about whether they’ll be competitive this year, but with a top 2 pick in their hand and what looks like ownership that is NOT afraid to spend money, they’ll definitely be competitive down the road.
LAD- You see, this is the drawback from buying and trading your roster each and every year...there’s literally nothing left on this roster. And with the remainder of the NL West looking mighty strong, that will be the demise of the Dodgers (though I will still be expecting their obligatory trades with the Nationals and Royals in the middle of the season).
LV- The Gamblers made sneaky moves at last year’s waiver deadline to acquire short-term talent, and their roster looks ready to make a postseason run. At the very least, they will make the Padres, Giants, and maybe Diamondbacks sweat a little more than they should.
SD- The Padres offseason plan was the same as the Phillies: moves that will get their team a ring. They might have burned bridges along the way and made a surprising change of plans, but that didn’t stop the Padres from being a clear top team in a division that is full of good teams.
SF- Oh, make no mistake, the Giants will be competing for that division title right alongside the Padres. This will be a fun division race to watch.

(Then again, knowing my luck with this division, the Dodgers are probably going to win the division anyway, because of baseball)

The decade is about to come to a close and the championship that the Phillies have been trying to get every year seems to elude them every time. The way they have made moves this offseason, it looks like the organization is throwing everything in the pot to try and get that one championship before we turn to the ‘30s. In a rematch from 2023, the Phillies will come out on top.

(BTW, if this all plays out, it would be 121 (yikes) years of misery for Cubs fans)

Lead Story - 10/29/2018

Offseason

October 28th-November 18th: Offseason/Entire progress of Free Agency
October 12th- Last Day for Relocation Requests (to be considered for the 2026 season)
November 16th-November 18th: Rule 5 Draft
November 19th- November 21st: Spring Training
November 26th- Regular Season

Waiver Wire

If you would like to place a claim a player on this list, please message me with the player's name in the subject. For Revokable Waivers, after a claim is made, the team may remove the player from waivers. Otherwise, you may work out a trade for the player or let the team claiming him claim him.

For all waivers, you have 2 days to claim a player. (See Rule 3.8)

*-Transaction not completed yet

ALL TIMES EST

DFA (removes player from the 40-man roster, if not claimed, then you may outright them to Triple-A, or release them)

--Claimed

--Cleared

Revocable Waivers (Trade Waivers, After non-trade deadline):

--Claimed Players:

--Cleared (able to be traded anywhere):

--Retracted (not able to be placed on revocable waivers again this offseason):

Irrevocable waivers (Usually used to remove a player from the 40-man roster without releasing him):

Current Waiver Claim Order:

Present Power Ranking Standings

Release Waivers (NOTE: payback year is the year in which the offseason falls. ex. paid back 2025 means paid back before the 2025-2026 offseason)

Due to the recent unexpected death of principle owner, Post Malone, when he attempted to tattoo himself while skydiving and forgot to open the chute in time, the Yankees will now be run by minority owner Stan Bezos, son of Amazon owner Jeff Bezos. Stan immediately relieved manager Karl Welzein of his duties due to "not showing up for days at a time, leaving during the game to get beer at the consession stands, and asking women repeatedly to see their chest beefers". They Yankees have hired AAA manager Brett Gardner to lead the team. Stan expects Gardner to return to "The Yankee Way" and bring the team back to glory. He has also agreed to raise the payroll to $215 million a year starting next year.

I don't know so much that it takes a sharp mind, It is more taking advantage of a flaw, and I think it's simple, if you find a league with such a set up simply leave and let it die it's natural death.

You can't use all those hidden gems if you have no competition because your League won't fill.

I was playing for almost 5 months before I learned about switching seasons. This put me at a big disadvantage compared to other owners who were aware of that ability.

I can chalk that up to a pretty underwhelming primer on playing the game, I don't expect to be handed the keys to the kingdom from day one, but crawling around in the dark and wondering what the heck happened is even more frustrating, and only a few folks will share that type of information - the rest like that I was uninformed, makes them feel smarter, that they have an unfair advantage, this site REALLY does need a better section for new owners if it wants to grow

The only way I discovered it was by seeing a guy I almost drafted as a 66 on another team as an 83, I was like what the hell is that? I thought they were cheating or something, but no, they had swapped a season is all.

It's funny that in Auto leagues a players Best Offensive season is selected - but in Custom leagues if the commissioner wants to be a dick he can change how a player is shown by changing his season, then draft him and take advantage, that's kind of shady too.
Fortunately the Custom league I am in has an honest and fair commissioner who don't play that crap.